2007 nip bottle courtesy of Matt. I have been saving this for the right moment and opening night of the NFL and the eve of my first full solo day as a SAHD seem to be just that moment. Thanks Matt for the opportunity!

Into a champagne flute pours a deep and slightly murky ruby red with shades of dark purple. Nary a bubble is seen when backlit and no indication of head shows upon the surface.

Huge seedy jammy raspberries on the nose. Hints of blueberries and blackberries as well. Medley of sticky fruits melds with rich melted milk chocolate and brown sugar. The immediate whiff of alchol that erupted from the bottle upon opening seems to have abated after sitting a few minutes. In fact, there's little indication of the immensity of this beer.

Raspberry is sweet and tart up front and syrupy. As soon as it hits the middle of the tongue, the massive tootsie roll wall wraps around the fruit and carries it like a wave to the finish. Chocolate and an odd, slightly rotten food taste show on the finish.

Carbonation is, eh, low. Body is very syrupy.

I enjoyed this less as I got deeper into the bottle. Not so much for the sweetness, but for the fairly gross off flavor that pops out at the finish. While unique and interesting, I'm not sure I would go out of my way for this given what it might take to land it. I'd recommend splitting your bottle and hoping that this beer hasn't somehow taken a downturn after five years. An interesting try, but likely not worth the effort.

2007 bottle thanks to my Secret Santa. Pours brown with just a ring of white head. Aroma is like a raspberry filled brownie with some boozy notes too. Flavor of medicinal raspberry with a chocolatey finish. Also some prunes and raisins. Top fruit beer? Not for me.

I'm sorry, kids, but I just didn't get this one. Hot, malty syrup...like a raspberry soda that had been left in the car with the windows rolled up on a hot summer day, for a week...virtually no carbonation either. Maybe I had a bad bottle?

Split a bottle of this with slander and schoolteacher at Spuyten Duyvil. Yes, we each had a serving the size of a brandy pour, which is appropriate for this beer. Didn't take notes, but didn't need to. Taste it once, and you remember it forever. Glowing deep red, no head... OK maybe a little head. Smells like a fresh raspberry harvest, as if you were stomping around in a vat of raspberries and the aroma were permeating your senses. Tastes like a red velvet raspberry cake with chocolate truffles, or perhaps like one of those Jacques Torres chocolates filled with raspberry puree. In fact, put this inside of chocolates, and they'd sell like hotcakes, I bet. I found the taste to be a bit too much like a raspberry cordial, and not enough like a beer, but unique nonetheless. The mouthfeel is quite remarkable -- "pillowy" is the first word that came to mind. Just so soft in the mouth, almost makes you think you're eating a piece of cake. An after-dinner sipper to be sure, not drinkable by any means. If you had any more than the small bottle of this at a sitting, I predict a big headache for you. I would love to be able to revisit this one in, say, about 10 years.

Scent is ok with raspberry initially coverd with brown sugar carmelized raisins and bread pudding. It all comes together to form a scent alongside the alcohol.

Taste is huge and bready with a red raspberry center then alcohol then raspberry again to finish it all off, but the alcohol is hidden in there somewhere. The carmel flavor holds on for quite a while. At 13.5 the alcohol really doesn't stand out all that much.

Mouthfeel is a bit thinner than I would expect from the taste and the smell, smooth but still on the medium side. The carbination seemed just about right.

Drinkability is easy to define, good. I am somewhat impressed with the hiding of the alcohol.

Note: This beer was 12.59 for 6.3 oz. I liked it ok, but at that price sadly, I won't be having another.

Color is deep burgandy, almost no head on top. Smells like raspberry mostly.

Taste is hard to describe. The raspberry juice flavor is there, but the background beer taste is difficult... I didn't like it all that much. But my wife loved it so it's hard to rate. Tasted like raspberry and dark chocolate with some alcohol mixed in. Some malt flavor but no hops.

Try it once if you must. I only tried it because it was so highly rated on BA.

Mmmm. so this BA classic was one of the tried out beers at the RnH this afternoon.

Served in a tiny chalice sort-of cup, the tap pour was essentially headless and served to the very limit. Opaque and rather purplish black.

Smell may be the most generous bit of it. very frutti di bosco throughout, and it doesnt take a full nose dive to point it out. sweet to slightly astringent and if anything, strong.

Taste wise, however, this was disappointing. the overall feel is juicy- as in, the sweezed produce of the fruit. however, it is abundant, if not artificial. rather feels like a concentrate. plus the feel is fairly thin, and seemingly refreshing if not for how alcoholey and sugary it is.

Overall this is certainly not my top of the class. The beer may well not be bad but it does give off an artificial feel to it. Not my pint of beer.

S: Wow! Super sweet raspberries and chocolate. I didn't realize there would be this much chocolate. That's pretty much all I can say. Just diabetically sweet syrup. No heat so that's a plus.

T: Pretty much more of the same. Super sweet chocolate and raspberries. That's it. This song is two notes. No room for anything else. Just a touch of heat. I suppose thats what three plus years will do.

M: Thick chewy body. Devoid of all carbonation.

D: Overall I guess I didn't know what to expect. I assumed it would be more raspberry and not as sweet. I'm actually glad I shared this. More than 3-4 ounces would have been way too much. Glad I had the chance to try it.

t: Lots of raspberries here, certainly, but I also taste grapes as well. This has a heavy, dense quality to it. There is some musty, semi-sweet maltiness here as well. The finish is tart, a bit dry, and has a very very faint medicinal quality to it.

m: Thick to the point of being syrupy and quite still.

d: Thanks to TheBlackMallard for this unique oppurtunity. This to me tastes more like a raspberry liqueur than a raspberry beer. Tasty and interesting, this just wasn't for me. Yet another example of how audaciously creative American brewers can be. Keep 'em coming!

This poured a dirty red to brown in color. The nose showed off lots of chocolate dipped raspberries. This is simillar in the medium-bodied palate that had nice richness. While this was an enjoyable beer, I do not quite get all the fuss. It was well-balanced yet fairly simple.

Nice pretty beer that smells fantastic, but is very much a cordial. Treat is that way and you'll be happy, otherwise, your out of luck.

Impressive beer but not something I would drink when I would go to drink a beer. It's a drink in a small glass share with friends after dinner drink.

I don't know if I would go out of my way to find this again, but it was one of those famous beers that 'everyone' seems to think should be tried. So I did, and while I didn't dislike it, it's not my cup of tea...or beer.

Miniature bottles courtesy of my boys SpencerDB, CaptainCougar, anyone else? So we tried 2004 and 2007. The pour is murky, muddy brown with low carbonation. Let me just say that this was not impressive whatsoever. Okay- it’s a slightly raspberry tangy super malt forward barleywine. I mean that is what this is. There is a lot of milk chocolate, raspberry chocolate, and it is just full of toffee. I mean it’s good but nothing that blew me out of the water. And that was the ’04. The ’07 literally tasted like broccoli. So- this is one that I’ll have to revisit. For now- meh. 7/4/6/3/12=3.2

Another 2007 bottle. Pours muddy, reddish brown and completely flat. Excellent aroma that is full of toffee, creme brulee, caramel, chocolate covered strawberries. Taste is tart, light, more raspberry character than I remember. Still thin bodied. 9/4/7/3/13=3.6

2004 Vintage. This is my second try, as the first bottle was bad. This one may be getting close to turning, but I chose to review it as a warning for others holding the 2004 vintage -- it may not be aging that well.

Hazy, deep burgundy color. Some light penetration, mostly at the edges. No head, no lacing, and, surprisingly, no legs.

Smell is very promising -- chocolate, honey/caramel, and raspberries as well as other dark fruits, such as figs and raisins. Faint hint of vinegar.

Taste departs a bit from smell. Quite tart, mainly the raspberry flavor, but that hint of vinegar comes back as well. Much more tart than sweet, overall. Touch of chocolate, bittersweet. Hint of caramel/toffee/butter.

Medium + body. No carbonation. A bit dry. Very silky/smooth texture.

This bottle was a big improvement over the first one I tried, but still not really my thing. For a fruity beer, this is very well done. For me at least, the smell led me to expect much more from the taste.

Poured into a flute. Big thanks to OHLRangers for this treat. 2007 vintage.

3.5 A: Opaque deep reddish purple color. No head, but signs of carbonation exist. A bit of particulate junk falls to the bottom.

4.5 S: Strong raspberry as in a reduced raspberry puree. Almost like some sort of liquour, but without the super high alcohol. Surprisingly chocolatey as well. I guess maybe like a highly fruited raspberry chocolate cake. Really nice.

3.5 T: Taste isn't nearly as good as the nose. Tartness from the raspberry is there, but there isn't a ton of raspberry taste (unlike NG RT). Still pretty chocolatety, but not really that sweet, which is disappointing. I was hoping for something really sweet and fruity. A bit too much roasty bitterness as well. Alcohol is well hidden like in most Kuhnhenn brews. While this isn't bad, it doesn't live up to expectations.

3.5 M: Only a thickish medium body. I was hoping for more. Just a touch of carbonation, this would be better with more. Not as creamy of smooth as I'd like either.

3.5 D: Again, this isn't bad, but I was hoping for something really sweet and fruity, like a port or something. The way it is (this vintage anyway) isn't the way I would have envisioned a beer of this nature coming out. I'd love the try the 2004, but I doubt I ever will.

Pours a dark raspberry brown with a thin ring of off-white foam. No lacing.

Juicy raspberries and currants on the nose, followed by rich chocolate and caramel. Sweet candy and chocolate. Almost cake-like. Great dessert nose.

The flavor really brings the raspberry fruit flavor to the front of everything, whereas in the nose it was more balanced. Less chocolate and caramel than the aroma, but more dark chocolate. Touch of astringency. Quite fruity with a hint of alcohol. After smelling the nose on this beer, the flavor seems somewhat lacking. Good, but not great.

Mouthfeel is substantial, yet feels bland. Light carbonation, but adequate. Feels like it could use more of something to open up the flavor.

Drinkability is above average. I loved the nose, but the rest of the beer didn't really live up to the hype. It was fun to try, but I wouldn't seek out another.

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2004 vintage, 187ml, but with brighter red wax, and a black-background (white print) label, similar to the 2007.

finer foam, almost creamy. forms better lacing, though most of it still doesn't stick.

aroma of raspberries is fresher and less "spoiled", along with the aroma overall. still some chocolate tones. slightly less booziness or alcohol presence.

taste is less acidic, with more malt and fruit coming forward.

slightly more active carbonation than the other '04.
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COMMENT

seems like this beer is best on draught or fresh. i feel i must either be missing out on that original (1st batch?) bulbous bottle of 2004, or perhaps it's simply that the other reviews here (of the bottled versions) are buying into top-100 hype.
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OLD REVIEW 4-6-09

thanks to vwcraig for the trade.

2007 release. small, 187ml green bottle, nothing like the picture above. simple aluminum grey bottle cap. vwcraig says it came with the black electrical tape wrapped around the cap, and might have been a precaution taken by the previous trader, and not done by kuhnhenn themselves.

poured into small tulip.

dark brown with red tint. almost opaque. some sediment in the bottle, giving a slight haze. fizzy tan head makes a 1-finger head that quickly fades to just a few wisps and a thing ring. the wisps eventually disappear too, and the ring shrinks to just a half ring. lacing never sticks.

flavor is much more tart than anticipated. not totally sour, but quite different than expected and worlds apart from what i remember at EBF '08. this mild acidity gives way to a strongly medicinal flavor, with raspberry and hint of cocoa again underneath. medicinal character continues into the moderately bitter finish with more notes of cocoa and hints of raspberry.

smooth at first and overall, but punctuated by tart acidity and then almost astringent phenols that in turn also accentuate the bitterness. mild to moderate carb that brings out the nicer fruit, caramel and cocoa, but also the less pleasant acidity, bitterness and medicinal phenols.

the aftertaste even has hints of skunkiness, which thankfully didn't show up in the fruity, malty aroma. but anyway, this was a big disappointment. maybe the green bottles did them in. again, this is totally the opposite from my experience tasting multiple samples at EBF '08.

will now be seeking the 2004 vintage, in hopes of rehabilitating my impression...

I had seen this beer's high ratings and had some very high expectations for it. It was almost impossible for it to have lived up to its legend.

Then I smelled it.
The scent was magnificent with a rich malty aroma with a lingering red fruit nose.
The first sip is like a warm, frothy dark chocolate bitters and raspberry crème.
Damn!

This is raspberry chocolate cake in a bottle. I imagine drinking these little 187ml bottles on a hard xcountry ski run. On a stop at a Lake Michigan plateau, cold clean air- and a bottle of raspberry chocolate cake. I'm going to buy as much of this as I can find.
I am hooked.

Pours a purple velvety shade, from a vintage 2007 bottle. Looks just like grape juice. No head whatsoever. Smells incredibly sweet. Like cotton candy with some dark fruit. Taste was a shocker for me. Not what I was expecting. I thought it would be sweet like in the smell. Instead it was overripe berry with a lot of salt. The saving grace was the noticeable raspberry taste that was left in the back of your throat. Very pleasant aftertaste. Alcohol is very well hidden in this brew. The beer went down very fast in all. Good thing there wasn't more to drink, because I would have drank them all and probably ended up face down on the floor.

187ml bottle, 2007 vintage, shared by CaptainCougar. Hazy red-brown with a small head. Sweet raspberry and malt aromas with a lightly aged quality. tastes like a rich, alcoholic, chocolate-raspberry truffle. Thick, with low carbonation. Tasty stuff and a nice treat, but I've never been wild about the dessert category on the whole.

Pours a murky burgundy color, hues of brown, garnet and raspberry when struck by the light, no visible head and no visible lacing. The aroma is pungent fleshy raspberry, very fresh fruit, but a very harsh alcohol sweetness with some rich dark grain, caramel and toffee sugar notes, it's already too sweet for me, but the fresh berry is fantastic. The flavors are similar, massive fresh raspberry, which is delicious, is instantly overpowered by intense alcohol sweetness, caramel, brown sugar and a bit of vanilla. The body is super thick and syrupy, very sticky, finishes rather smoothly but with some harsh alcohol behind it.

Verdict: Can't say I am super impressed given the hype and ratings behind this beer, the fruit is wonderfully done, but the harsh alcohol and cloying qualities ruined it for me. Not sure what age will do to this beer, but I have a hard time believing that it will improve.

I was delighted to find this 2007 vintage on the shelf at a inconvenience store with an extensive beer collection along with Tenacious Cassis on a trip to downstate MI. Pours a murky brown color with a tan head. The smell is the most interesting part of this beer with dark fruits, chocolate and liqueur. The taste is not as interesting with a thick syrupy sweet taste of rasberries. The mouthfeel is thick and coats the tongue. Overall, I am glad I tried this beer but I expected much more. However, if you have a chance Tenacious Cassis is a must.

Bottle. Pours a murky opaque mahogany color with very little head. What head there is is a slight tan color that collars around the glass. The aroma is pretty unassuming with notes of raspberry and malt. Medium/heavy mouthfeel with slight carbonation. Raspberry undertones carry throughout the beer wih other notes of vanilla and caramel. A sipper for sure. Slight alcohol showing. Not the most appetizing looking but a tasty beer for sure.